A system that could widely expand stent treatments for patients with diseased arteries won the top prize in the Schoofs Prize for Creativity, one of a pair of competitions that make up Innovation Days. The event, which offers more than $28,000 in total prizes, rewards UW-Madison students for innovative and marketable ideas.

For the first time in the competition’s 17-year history, the winning inventor has claimed first place in the Schoofs Prize two years in a row. Mechanical engineering senior Tom Gerold created the MicroMag Stent Deployment System after watching his grandfather struggle with arterial disease. MicroMag is an electromagnetic system to deploy self-expanding metal stents and retract the catheter that inserts those stents. This system would allow surgeons to place stents, the wire mesh tubes used to inflate blocked arteries, in smaller blood vessels than currently is possible.

The winner of the Tong Prototype Prize, the second major Innovation Days competition is electrical and computer engineering student Ray Uhen, who invented Plane Balance. The device is a slim flight-training tool that sits on top of the instrument panel and helps pilots monitor small aircraft coordination, or balance, via a system of color-coded LED lights.

Connect

Support us

The University of Wisconsin Foundation raises, invests and distributes funds for the benefit of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Support the College of Engineering or its departments or programs by making a secure online gift. Learn more: Make a gift to the college

Search this site

Search for:

Copyright 2013
The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System